Wichita eagle., 1887-07-30
CARRYING BRIDGES.
THE NEW INVENTION M. DE BRAzzA
WILL TAKE TO AFRICA.

Explorers Convinced of the Necessity
of Making Themselves Comfortable.
"Roughing 1t" is Simply an Invitation
to Disaster-Modern Advantages.
The improvements that have been made
within few years in travelling equipment.
have greatly increased the facilities tor ex-
ploration, while lessening its discomforts
Savorgnan de Brazza will soon take back to
Africa the latest invention designed to facili-
tate the work Of explorers If it is as perfect
as its inventors assert, 1t viii be great boon
to African travellers.
One of the greatest impediments to explora-
tory work in all tropical regions is the large
number of rivers, big and little, that must be
crossed An expedition sometimes has to
cross three or four streams in a single day
Often the stream is unfordable, and the party
has to walk miles to find boats or ford.
Where the river can be forded the explorers
pass over on the shoulders of their stout car
riers. Sometimes a careless or unfortunate
porter droIS box or bundle of valuables In
the water, and it is ruined or lost. Every
body will remember the picture in one of
Stanley books representing the explorer as
standing on the bank Of rapid river, aiming
his rife at one of his porters, whom be threat
ems to shoot if he drops his load The poor
fellow, submerged to his neck, is struggling
slowly along with Stanley's precious box of
records on his head.
The French Congo is cut up by almost in
Vulnerable streams When De Brazza goes
back there in month or two he will take
with him two portable bridges. They are q
Yovv i,,cf nv
pany Of French machinists. These bridges
are each thirty meters, or about 100 feet in
length, which exceeds the width of most Afri-
can rivers. It lis asserted that soldiers, sailors
or natives will be able to put up one of these
bridges complete in three quarters Of an
hour, and that men, mules and heavily laden
wagons can safely cross upon them. They
are, of course, divisible into sunall pieces, and
can be transported on the backs OF pori ers
across savage and roadless countries.
MAKING THEMSELVES COMFORTABLE.
Explorers are now more firmly ccnvii ced
than they used to be Of the necessity Of
making themselves as comfortable a. the cir
cumstances will permit, and SO they provide
themselves with roomy tents, iron bed
steads, cork beds, rubber bath tubs, folt ing
chairs, portable tables and other con-
veniences of civilization. They think, in
tropical countries especially, that any at
tempt to rough it more than is actu ally
necessary is simply to invite disaster. The
improvements also that have been made in
their scientific instruments and food supp lies
have much facilitated their work and added
to their comfort. By the invention of dry
gelatine plates travellers have been able to
discard their rude and inadequate drawings
for the more satisfactory process OF photog-
raphy. The comparatively new practice of
canning all sorts of provisions is Il great Don
to explorers. 1t is found even III trol ical
climates that canned soups, meats and veg
etables will keep for an almost unlin tied
length of time In this way explorers now
take along for their private table little deli
cacies which their predecessors could not OBJ
tain. and the empty tin cans in most parts Of
Africa make very good money, as the natives
regard them as valuable presents
In the past fifty years there have not cen
any great improvements In the geographical
instruments used by explorers, though in
their present form they are more handy and
portable than they used to be. Modern EN-
winding and water tight watches are n eat
convenience and so are portable boats . ade
In sections, comparatively recent invent on
The greatest advantage, however, en- yed
by recent travellers Is the ease with he. dis
tant parts Of the world are now reac ed
Fifty years ago we were 100 days lis ant
from the cape Of Good Hope and 100 Gays
from Bombay. Now the explorer is not only
carried with celebrity across the sea- but, as a
rule, he can make use of modern facilities of
travel almost to the very threshold of the
region he intends to explore-New York un